WWF SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role
| series = [[WWE 2K|''SmackDown!]] | platforms = PlayStation | released = |JP|25 January 2001}} | genre = Sports | modes = Single-player, multiplayer }} 'WWF SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role' (Exciting Pro Wrestling 2'' in Japan) is a professional wrestling video game released on the PlayStation console by THQ and developed by Yuke's. It is part of the WWF SmackDown! (later renamed WWE SmackDown vs. Raw, then WWE; now simply WWE2K) series based on the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) professional wrestling promotion. It is the sequel to WWF SmackDown!, which was released in March 2000, and was succeeded by WWF SmackDown! Just Bring It on the PlayStation 2 in November 2001. It is the best-selling combat sports game on a single format (PlayStation) with 3.2 million copies sold. This also marks the last WWE game to ever feature Chyna just months before parting ways with the company. This was until she was announced as DLC for WWE 2K20 in 2019. Gameplay The Season Mode was heavily modified in this game. Along with removing the pre-season mode from the original, Know Your Role gave more storylines and more matches per show. These changes were given a mixed reaction by fans and critics alike. There are a number of flaws in the Season Mode, such as the long loading times needed for even the most insignificant scenes (like a wrestler walking down a corridor). Wrestlers, wrestling moves, and arenas are unlocked as the player progresses through a season. The Season Mode has multiplayer support, with up to four players playing at once in a Season. Wrestlers such as Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Billy Gunn, Mick Foley (Including Cactus Jack) and Debra Marshall are unlockable superstars. This was also the first SmackDown game to feature wrestlers such as Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit. Throughout the series, this is Michael Cole's first appearance as an unlockable superstar, which would appear in his second game which is WWF No Mercy and would not appear again in the series until WWE '12 as his last appearance as a DLC superstar. Big Show and Ken Shamrock were removed from the game before release; Big Show had been removed from the promotion's programming and sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling while Shamrock left WWF to return to mixed martial arts competition, but both may randomly appear during a Royal Rumble match (of which the player can take control of) and can be used in other modes using cheat devices, although their names were removed. Create Modes WWF Smackdown! 2: Know Your Role was the first game in the Smackdown series which introduced advanced Create-A-Superstar, allowing the player to create a character in greater detail as opposed to just choosing preset mix-and-match templates like the previous game. A unique feature 'Create-A-Manager' was included which allows the player to assign managers such as Paul Bearer and Tori to different superstars. In addition, more features were added such as Create-A-Moveset, Create-A-Taunt, and Create-A-Stable which allowed up to 4 members. Reception | EGM = 8.83/10 | Fam = 30/40 | GI = 9/10 | GamePro = | GameRev = B+ | GSpot = 8.8/10 | IGN = 8.9/10 | OPM = | PSM = 8/10 | XPlay = | rev1 = The Cincinnati Enquirer | rev1Score = }} The game received "universal acclaim" according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 30 out of 40. The PlayStation version of WWF SmackDown! 2 received a "Platinum" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 300,000 copies in the United Kingdom. See also *List of licensed wrestling video games *List of fighting games *List of video games in the WWE 2K Games series *WWE 2K References External links * Category:2000 video games Category:PlayStation (console) games Category:PlayStation (console)-only games Category:Video games developed in Japan Category:WWE SmackDown video games Category:THQ games Category:Yuke's games Category:Multiplayer and single-player video games Category:Professional wrestling games